A standout work that effortlessly blends SF and mystery elements with incredible art.
In author/illustrator Perrodeau’s graphic novel, translated from the French, an outsider comes to a remote and insular village.
After Pavil’s plane crashes in a field near Lapyoza—a village of stilt houses surrounding a body of water—the inhabitants are initially suspicious of him. Because the ferry to the nearest city won’t arrive for weeks, a council meets to decide whether Pavil should be allowed to stay; they give him permission after they accept that he’s an ordinary citizen and not a spy sent from the Empire. But although he must participate in the village’s communal activities, he’s forbidden from their sacred rituals and sites—especially the island where Hodä, the village’s protective deity, is said to live. As the citizens of Lapyoza slowly accept Pavil, they reveal more secrets about the body of water, including the fact that below its surface lies a sunken city that’s far more technologically advanced than any modern civilization—and that Hodä was the cause of its destruction. After Pavil finds an ancient artifact that’s washed ashore, he meets a young woman named Yüni who agrees to take him on dives to visit the underwater ruins. When Pavil’s incessant curiosity eventually brings him to the island where Hodä lives, the truth is soon revealed about Pavil and Hodä alike. Perrodeau deftly avoids the impulse to explain too much about either the fantastic setting or the mystery at the heart of it; he always presents just enough information to compel readers to read further. He tells much of the story through wordless panels featuring Pavil exploring an island in secret or taking part in communal activities with other villagers. The art style is incredibly sparse, bordering on minimalist, using simple line drawings and plain washes of color from a limited palette—and it’s frankly incredible that Perrodeau infuses so much emotion and life into these deceptively simple-looking drawings.
A standout work that effortlessly blends SF and mystery elements with incredible art.Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2025
ISBN: 9781990521416
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Black Panel Press
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Using modern language, McDonald spins the well-known tale of the two young, unrequited lovers. Set against Nagar’s at-times...
A bland, uninspired graphic adaptation of the Bard’s renowned love story.
Using modern language, McDonald spins the well-known tale of the two young, unrequited lovers. Set against Nagar’s at-times oddly psychedelic-tinged backgrounds of cool blues and purples, the mood is strange, and the overall ambiance of the story markedly absent. Appealing to what could only be a high-interest/low–reading level audience, McDonald falls short of the mark. He explains a scene in an open-air tavern with a footnote—“a place where people gather to drink”—but he declines to offer definitions for more difficult words, such as “dirges.” While the adaptation does follow the foundation of the play, the contemporary language offers nothing; cringeworthy lines include Benvolio saying to Romeo at the party where he first meets Juliet, “Let’s go. It’s best to leave now, while the party’s in full swing.” Nagar’s faces swirl between dishwater and grotesque, adding another layer of lost passion in a story that should boil with romantic intensity. Each page number is enclosed in a little red heart; while the object of this little nuance is obvious, it’s also unpleasantly saccharine. Notes after the story include such edifying tidbits about Taylor Swift and “ ‘Wow’ dialogs from the play” (which culls out the famous quotes).Pub Date: May 10, 2011
ISBN: 978-93-80028-58-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Campfire
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2011
Even so, this remains Macbeth, arguably the Bard of Avon’s most durable and multilayered tragedy, and overall, this enhanced...
A pairing of the text of the Scottish Play with a filmed performance, designed with the Shakespeare novice in mind.
The left side of the screen of this enhanced e-book contains a full version of Macbeth, while the right side includes a performance of the dialogue shown (approximately 20 lines’ worth per page). This granular focus allows newcomers to experience the nuances of the play, which is rich in irony, hidden intentions and sudden shifts in emotional temperature. The set and costuming are deliberately simple: The background is white, and Macbeth’s “armor” is a leather jacket. But nobody’s dumbing down their performances. Francesca Faridany is particularly good as a tightly coiled Lady Macbeth; Raphael Nash-Thompson gives his roles as the drunken porter and a witch a garrulousness that carries an entertainingly sinister edge. The presentation is not without its hiccups. Matching the video on the right with the text on the left means routinely cutting off dramatic moments; at one point, users have to swipe to see and read the second half of a scene’s closing couplet—presumably an easy fix. A “tap to translate” button on each page puts the text into plain English, but the pop-up text covers up Shakespeare’s original, denying any attempts at comparison; moreover, the translation mainly redefines more obscure words, suggesting that smaller pop-ups for individual terms might be more meaningful.
Even so, this remains Macbeth, arguably the Bard of Avon’s most durable and multilayered tragedy, and overall, this enhanced e-book makes the play appealing and graspable to students . (Enhanced e-book. 12 & up)Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2013
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: The New Book Press LLC
Review Posted Online: Nov. 6, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2013
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